1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a radar apparatus and an antenna apparatus, and more particularly to an integrated radar apparatus and an integrated antenna apparatus, which make it possible to achieve an angle resolution with high definition, to reduce a size of the radar and the number of devices included therein, and to integrate long and mid-range radar function and short range radar function.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As the intellectualization of the vehicle proceeds, a conventional vehicle is being equipped with various kinds of vehicle systems, such as: an ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control) system for detecting a driver's own lane; an LCA (Lane-Change Assist) system for performing the detection of a side-rear lane; a STOP & GO system for performing a front detection and anti-crash function; a Parking Assist system for performing a parking control; LCA (Lane-Change Assist)/BSD (Blind-Spot Detection)/RPC (Rear Pre Crash) system for detecting a side-rear and another vehicle cutting in from a side lane to thereby perform the crash warning and the anti-crash.
However, various kinds of vehicle systems for the vehicle require different distances to targets, and thus signal transmission ranges of radars used in the vehicle systems are different from each other. For instance, the ACC system adopts long range radar for ACC system in order to detect the driver's own lane within a range between 0 and 250 m. The STOP & GO system adopts short range radar for STOP & GO system in order to detect the vehicle cutting in from a side lane within a range between 0 and 60 m, so that it performs the functions of the crash warning and the anti-crash. Also, in the LCA/BSD system, the short range radar mounted at the side-rear performs the BSD function within a range between 0 and 20 m, i.e., the detection of the blind spot nearby, and the mid-range radar for LCA performs the detection of the side-rear lane within a range between 0 and 70 m.
However, in order to apply the ACC system, LCA system, STOP & GO system, LCA/BSD/RPC system to the vehicle, the short range radar apparatus and the long and mid range radar apparatus should be separately mounted to the vehicle, because it is necessary to meet different distances to the targets required by vehicle systems and different ranges of the radar signals.
However, to separately mount the short range radar apparatus for the short range vehicle system and the long and mid-range radar apparatus for the long and mid-range vehicle system has many limitations in a mounting space for covering both the short range radar apparatus and the long and mid-range radar apparatus, due to an ultrasonic sensor, a license plate, a fog lamp, support structures and etc., which are already contained in a bumper of the vehicle.
On one hand, the vehicle systems applied to the vehicle need to recognize the situation around the vehicle in order to secure the intellectualized and stabilized driving and parking and the driver's safety, and thus the angle resolution with the high definition (referred to as “Lateral Resolution”) is required. Conventionally, in order to obtain the angle resolution with the high definition, more array antennas were included in a receiving antenna. In other words, a number of channels for the receiving antenna were included in order to thereby improve the angle resolution. However, the conventional way of improving the angle resolution has the disadvantage in that the size of the radar apparatus as well as the size of the antenna increases. Also, the increase in the number of the antennas and channels increase the number of devices for transmitting/receiving a signal in the radar apparatus.
On the other hand, although the short range radar apparatus for the short range vehicle system and the long and mid-range radar apparatus for the long and mid range vehicle system are integrated into a single apparatus to thereby embody an integrated radar apparatus, the integrated apparatus still has the problems in that as the number of the antennas and the channels increase, the size of the radar apparatus and the number of the devices included in the radar apparatus increase, and the manufacturing cost increases accordingly, because it is necessary to meet different distances to the targets desired by vehicle systems, the different ranges of the radar signals, and the angle resolution with the high definition (the lateral resolution).
Accordingly, it is needed to provide an integrated radar apparatus with an antenna structure, which makes it possible to attain the angle resolution with the high definition, to decrease the size and the number of the devices and to integrate the long and mid-range radar function and the short radar function, but such an integrated radar apparatus has not yet developed.